Home health care nurse Troy Webb, right, checks Les Morrill's lung sounds Wednesday while he receives an intravenous infusion of alpha-1 antitrypsin at his home in St. George.

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It wasn't exactly a surprise. He had been a heavy smoker for 40 years and spent his career working in a dusty steel mill.

But it wasn't COPD. Although the symptoms were similar, three years later a test revealed that Morrill actually had alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a hereditary condition passed on genetically from parents to children that can cause lung problems and liver disease. The disorder stems from a severe lack of the alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) protein in the blood. ...